Where to find transcranial Doppler ultrasound equipment in Australia

[Sarah Tee]

This is an FYI post only. Hoping it might help other Aussies trying to track this down.

Note that as of November 2023, I don't have any evidence that any of these locations have performed testing for orthostatic intolerance disorders. But I believe that they all could with very little or even no fuss.

Instructions, which are apparently fairly standard, can be found in Dr Peter Novak's research papers. In lieu of a tilt table test, patients can do an active stand test or similar while wearing the TCD headset.

Note that it will be up to your specialist to write a persuasive order or contact the service. "Investigation of cerebrovascular disturbance" seems to be a good phrase to use.

(I am attempting to get testing at the Austin in Melbourne and will report back if I am successful.)

 

Public:

The Austin Hospital, Melbourne

https://www.austin.org.au/diagnosing-brain-spinal-cord-nerve-muscle-disorders/for-patients/

https://www.austin.org.au/diagnosing-brain-spinal-cord-nerve-muscle-disorders/for-health-professionals/

https://www.austin.org.au/Assets/Files/Neurodiagnostics request form.pdf

 

The Neurological Intervention and Imaging Service of Western Australia (NIISWA)

http://niiswa.com/pi_tcd.html

https://www.scgh.health.wa.gov.au/Our-Services/Service-directory/NIISWA

 

Private:

Sydney Adventist Hospital has one specialist who mentions TCD in his bio, presumably because he can order it at the hospital for his patients:

https://www.sah.org.au/peterpuhl

The website only mentions vascular testing, but TCD is sometimes considered a type of vascular scan, just that the arteries are in your neck and head.

https://www.sah.org.au/ultrasound/

 

St Vincent's Clinic, Sydney

https://www.stvincentsclinic.com.au/find-a-doctor/specialties/vascular-laboratory

 

A private clinic, Sharpe Cardiology in Queensland, uses TCD to detect a particular heart problem. Maybe if your specialist is nearby and very persuasive, they can create an arrangement for it to be used to measure orthostatic changes. Long shot, of course.

https://www.sharpecardiology.com.au/post/screening-for-a-pfo

(Not sure of location - connected to Gold Coast Private Hospital.)

 

Another private clinic on the Gold Coast using TCD to detect a heart problem. Again, maybe your specialist can persuade them to do an orthostatic test. Another long shot.

https://heartbrainclinic.com.au/post/how-do-i-know-if-i-have-a-pfo/

 

A private imaging company at the Gold Coast (may not have transcranial Doppler but worth a shot):

https://mermaidbeachradiology.com.au/ultrasound-gold-coast/

 

This one does vascular Doppler and has locations in NSW and QLD, although I’m not sure whether they do transcranial:

https://www.qscan.com.au/patient-services/ultrasound/vascular-ultrasound/

 

Other:

This specialist in South Australia, Dr Michelle McDonnell, has done studies on TCD so can perhaps help you to find out where and how to get one in South Australia:

https://www.thephysioclinic.com.au/2018/12/michelles-story/

[Sarah Tee]

I suspect from the wording that The Alfred in Melbourne also has transcranial Doppler:

https://www.alfredhealth.org.au/services/non-coronary-intervention-clinic

https://www.alfredhealth.org.au/services/vascular-laboratory

Again, they are not specifically using it for dysautonomia, so your specialist will need to either word things carefully (so as not to scare them off) or be persuasive and convince them that they can do it.